Every Time We Touch
by ninjapixie27
Summary: When Mario leaves and Peach gets kidnapped by Bowser it's up to some one else to save her. But what will happen when Princess Peach falls in love with her rescuer? wow i suck at making up summaries!
1. Goodbye

Disclaimer: Ahhh yes, Heaven forbid anybody forget the disclaimer!! Well anyone with half a brain should know that I do not own Peach, Marth, Mario, Link, Luigi, Daisy, Zelda, or any of the other main characters. They all belong to Nintendo. I do however own the Dark Master (whom is mentioned very briefly.)

* * *

" Ugh! Mario! Can you clean up after yourself?!" When Peach had invited Mario and Luigi to come live in her castle, she had no idea what a mess they were. They never seemed to respect her, or her property, and Peach was getting sick of it.

" Wow Peach," Mario called from the other room," You're the women here. That means _you _clean up for _me_!"

That was too much for Peach. " That's It! I wish you would just leave!" Mario's heart filled with sadness at these words.

" You know what Peach? I think I will!" The sadness turned to anger, and Mario left to go pack.

" You say that like I should be sad! I'm glad you're leaving!" Peach yelled. " And take your stupid brother with you!" Peach didn't have anything against Luigi; she just wanted everything that reminded her of Mario gone. " TOAD!" Peach's loyal servant came running. " I want you to see to it that Mario and Luigi are gone by tonight!"

" Yes Ma'am! " Toad replied. All in all, he felt sorry for Princess Peach. She shut everyone out. Her only friends were her Zelda, and Mario, who was now gone. She just couldn't love; She had been hurt to many times. No one Knew who the real Princess Peach was, a scared, small, insecure girl.

Peach watched from the window as Luigi and Mario left her castle. " Don't come back!" she yelled, even though she knew they couldn't hear her. Her one True friend was gone, and she had pushed him away.

Later that night, Peach sat awake in her bed. She just couldn't sleep and she knew why, though she'd never admit it to herself.

_BOOM!!!!! _ An explosion sounded through the castle.

" What the heck was that?" Peach yelled as she ran to her closet. If this kind of thing had happened a few months ago she would have ran in there to hide, but that was _before… _Now the only reason she was going to her closet was because that's where she kept her weapons. Peach quickly grabbed a sword and started for her bedroom door. When she got to the hallway she found none other than her old foe, Bowser.

" Hello Princess. Nice to see you again! So where's your boyfriend?"

" He is not my boyfriend and he's not here! Witch is a good thing for me because now I get to have the pleasure of kicking your ass myself!" Bowser laughed.

" Since when did you learn to fight- OOWWWWW!" Bowser cried out in pain as Peach took her sword out of his foot. " That's enough! " That was all Peach heard him say before she felt something stab her arm and then… nothing…

* * *

The Dark Master paced up in down in front of his young apprentice. " You know what you must do? " the Dark Master asked.

" Yes. I know Master"

" You have great power"

" I proved that when I fought yesterday, didn't I?"

" You leave tonight then!"

" Yes sir."

Please review and tell me what you think! This is my first fic with multiple chapters so please don't be too harsh!


	2. Kill Me And I'll Kiss You

Disclaimer: I own nothing. I hope you knew that.

* * *

When Peach woke up she found herself in the dungeon of Bowser's castle. The ugly Koopa was sitting watch beside the cell she was in.

"Peach my darling! Your awake!" Bowser stood up. " You've been asleep for so long I was beginning to think that you would sleep right through this evenings festivities!" He laughed his evil laugh.

"What's going on this evening?" Peach asked drowsily.

" Our wedding of course!" This time Peach laughed.

" Oh! Our wedding! Of course! I hope there is a large crowd! That way they can all see me escape!"

" Oh sweet Peach! I'm afraid Mario hasn't been invited! So how do you plan to escape?" By now Peach was getting annoyed with the fact that Bowser still saw her as a sweet, innocent princess who couldn't defend herself.

" Screw Mario! I don't need some plumber to defend me anymore Bowser! And damn it you better get used to it!" Peach was yelling now. She searched around for something to throw at Bowser. She found a bone and chucked it at him. It hit his face.

" As feisty as ever…" Bowser mumbled as he rubbed the spot where the bone had hit him. " That's enough of that!" He threw the bone back at her. It hit her arm. Pleased with himself, Bowser got up and left, leaving Peach alone with nothing but a few bones to keep her company.

Peach waited until she was alone and then she started crying. The old Peach would have cried right in front of Bowser, but once again… that was what she would have done… before… Now Peach would never let anyone see her cry. So she waited until she was alone. Or… until she _thought _she was alone…

After a few hours of crying silently, Peach finally fell asleep. She didn't get to sleep long, however, before she was woken up by a loud cracking noise. Peach sat up in alarm. Thinking it was Bowser, she quickly grabbed the bone she was hit with earlier and threw it. This time it wasn't thrown back.

" What's wrong Bowser? Did I hit you to hard?" It wasn't Bowser voice that answered.

" Shut up!" The mysterious voice said.

" Who… Who are you?" Peach asked with a shaky voice.

" I said shut up!" All the stranger could see in the darkness was blonde hair, and two blue eyes that practically glowed. He picked the lock to the cell and then flipped on the lights. He made sure that he stayed in the shadows though.

Suddenly Peach felt a sword being held to her neck. She knew this was the end. More than anything she wished she could just call for Mario and he would come running. But Mario was long gone. And she was above calling for help.

"If your going to kill me anyway, at least let me have the dignity of seeing my murderer."

The stranger stepped into the light. He had blue hair, blue eyes, and he was wearing all black. Suddenly the stranger was over come with some feeling he had never felt before. _Don't look in her eyes, _he thought. But it was to late.

" I – I don't think I can kill you…" Now his voice was shaky.

" Why?! Do you want to force me into marriage too? I'm sorry babe, but your going to have to get in line!"

" I- I- don't think I would ever force you to do anything you didn't want to…" the stranger started crying.

" Whoa, I never heard of a murderer who gets emotional over his victims." This boy had just tried to kill her! He was evil! But if that was true… why did Peach feel so sorry for him…?

" Babe, what's wrong?" Peach got a weird feeling when she called him 'babe'. She called everyone babe. So why did this feel so different?

" I'm sorry!" the stranger said through his tears. " I never should have come here! I never should have gone to the Dark Master in the first place!"

" Calm down. It's Ok. I forgive you." _What the Heck! I forgive him? Did I really just say that?! He just tried to kill me and I forgive him? I must be really out of it. _The words ' I forgive you' really surprised Peach, but not near as much as what she did next.

" You do? Wow… that's a fir-" That was he could say before Peach pressed her lips to his. _What is she doing? I just tried to kill her! And she's kissing me?_ After a few seconds Peach pulled away.

" Oh my gosh! I can soooo not believe I just did that!"

"Me either… Well I – I guess I should probably give you some information. My name is Marth; I'm the prince of Altea. Do you have your cell phone?"

"Ummmmm… no?" Peach had no idea why was asking her this. Was he trying to give her his number? Part of her hoped he was.

" Well then you can use mine. You can call some one as soon as we get out of here. Don't worry, I'll help you escape."

" Oh Hell no. Sorry babe, but I'm not some defenseless Princess."

" I know. But I stole that turtles keys." He held up Bowser's keys with pride.

"Oh." Peach laughed.

That day, they broke out of Bowser's castle. That day Marth stopped working for the Dark Master. That day they both fell in love, and that day, they set off a chain of events that would change their lives forever…

Ok, so please tell me what you think! I really want reviews. This chapter is a little longer so hopefully it's a little better than the first!


	3. Chocolate Cake

Disclaimer: Ahhhh yes, we mustn't forget the pointless disclaimer! I own nothing. There, now, On to the next chapter! Oh and for some reason the line thing that separates the view points and such wouldn't show up so I'm just gonna insert words explaining what time has passed and such.

NOW ON WITH THE STORY!

Peach and Daisy sat in Peach's room, listening to music.

" Ok Peach," Daisy's voice was full of concern," ever since you got back from lizard boy's castle you've been acting really weird." Everything about Peach seemed different. Daisy hadn't seen her this happy since . . .before . . .

"Nothing's wrong Daisy, don't worry. I'm just happy. Is there something wrong with that?"

" No! I'm just saying that… well honestly I thought you would still be pissed about the whole Mario thing." Then it clicked in Daisy's head. Mario had left, witch means that _he _wasn't the one that helped Peach escape from . . . _I get it now!_

" Ok, who is he?" The concern in Daisy's voice had been replaced with the urgency that came from wanting to get some good gossip. Peach's heart started racing. Still, her face remained calm. She was good at hiding her emotions.

" Who's who? Daisy what are you talking about?"

" You know exactly what I'm talking about. Some boy helped you escape from the castle and now you like him. Who is it?"

"Ok is it that hard to believe that I escaped by myself? Why do I always have to have some boy help me?" Peach did her best to change the subject without being too obvious.

" On any other day I would have said that you could have escaped by yourself. But after the thing with Mario… Don't change the subject! Who is he?"

" No one. There is no 'he'. So put that idea out of your head. Look I got to go. I have to meet Zelda somewhere. Bye." That excuse was believable enough… that is, If Daisy hadn't known that Zelda was on vacation.

IN THE MEAN TIME . . .

" I don't know Luigi," Mario and his brother were walking through the park," What if Bowser comes and kidnaps her?"

"Well, if that happens, there are plenty of other guys to save her."

_That's what I'm afraid of . . ._

LATER . . .

"Forget it Marth!" Peach was laughing as she talked, " I won!" Peach had spent most of the day at Marth's house. Since his parents didn't need his help in Altea at the moment, Marth had convinced them to let him move out to the small piece of land by the Mushroom Kingdom. It was pretty cheap to buy and it was only 30 minutes away from Peach's castle. His "brothers" Ike, and Roy had moved out here too, as well as their friend Pit.

" Ok! Gosh!" Marth was laughing too," I can't believe you beat me! No one has ever beaten me at SSBB except for Link. I swear, that pig loving elf cheats . . ."

" Hey, you wanna come over for dinner tonight?" Peach hoped he'd say yes. Not just because she wanted to spend time with him, but also because she didn't like to be alone. When she was alone . . . that was when all the memories came back . . .

" Sure. What time?" Peach felt relieved.

" I don't care. Well I gotta go. See you later babe." She got up and left, leaving Marth alone in the main room of the house. Just then Ike, Roy, and Pit came downstairs.

"Wow dude!" Roy was jumping up and down. " She is so hot!"

" Are you high?!" Ike shouted at his younger 'brother'. "Zelda is way hotter than Peach!" This time Pit spoke up.

" I think they're both cute!" Roy started talking again.

" So, have you made out with her yet?" Marth's face looked surprised.

" Dude, I am not answering that." Ike turned to Roy.

" That means that they've done _more!" _Roy, being the youngest, was confused.

" What do you mean 'more'?"

" I mean, they probably had. . . Chocolate Cake!" Now Roy was even more confused. Ike decided to explain.

" Chocolate Cake is a term that means having. . . well. . . you know…" There was a devious look in his eyes.

" Oh! I get it! Marth have you had Chocolate Cake with Peach?!"

" What? No! Of course not! And Ike? Really?" Ike beamed with pride. All Marth could do was laugh.

END OF CHAPTER

Well, that's the end of my third chapter. Oh, and just to clear up any confusion, this is taking place during the present time period. So all those sweet electronic devices that we all love, existed at the time of this story. And I will probably mention some of them in this story.


	4. These memories are broken

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

**ON WITH THE STORY!**

Daisy walked into her Peach's castle at 7:30. She had left her cell phone there from when she was there earlier.

" Hey Peach! I forgot y pho-" Daisy stopped herself mid sentence. Peach was… kissing someone! "Peach! You're such a liar! I knew there was a boy in your life!"

" Daisy! I… I can explain!" _What is Daisy doing here?! This is great, just great! _Peach's thoughts were cut off by Marth.

" Who are you talking to?" He turned around to see Daisy standing in front of Peach with her arms crossed. " Oh! Daisy! Umm… H- hey! What's up?" Daisy ignored him.

" Daisy! Please don't tell Zelda! She loves to gossip and she would ruin me!" Peach hated the fact that she was begging, but she was to worried about her secret getting out to stop.

" Ok. But it's not Zelda I'm worried about!" Daisy stepped aside. Mario was standing behind her, mouth agate. After about a minute of just standing there, he spoke up.

" Who are you?" He asked Marth. The truth was he didn't care who this blue haired freak was. He just wanted to know the name of the person he would be put in jail for killing! Mario loved Peach and he didn't want her to be with any one else. On top of that, this man was not right for her. He could tell just by looking at him.

" I'm Marth, the Prince of Altea."

_A prince! Peach had never been the kind of princess who seemed to be interested in princes. She had always seemed to like the idea that she would fall in love with some one who had so much less than she did. And now she's kissing a prince?! _

" Well Marth I just want you to know that Peach is definitely one of a kind. It's not everyday that you meet some one who's as much of a bitch as her!" Mario yelled, never taking his eyes away from Peach.

Marth turned towards Peach, excepting her to be in tears. But her eyes were dry. Peach never cried in front of people. Not after…everything that had happened. Peach broke her silence.

" Mario, calm down. Don't lose your temper." Peach was trying to stay calm.

" Yeah Peach, because your real good at controlling your anger, aren't you? Then again, you do take after your _mother!" _ Mario said the word mother with a certain tone that neither Marth nor Daisy could figure out. Peach however, knew exactly what he meant by that tone. She jumped at Mario, knocking him to the ground. She began throwing punches.

Mario had made a promise to never hurt a girl, especially Peach, but after 30 seconds of getting beat up he couldn't help it. He punched her in the stomach. That was all he remembered doing before he blacked out. He woke up a minute later to see daisy screaming hopelessly as she watched her cousin tear apart anything she could get her hands on, including Marth.

When Marth tried to grab Peach to calm her down, she had turned around and scratched his face. Finally, Marth did what he had to do he grabbed Peach by her shoulders and punched her. She automatically fell to the ground, unconscious.

Mario watched Peach lying unconscious, and the pain he was feeling instantly turned to anger. This dude had just punched Peach! Who knows what other abusive things he would do! Suddenly Mario felt someone grab him and stand him up. It was Marth.

" Get. Out." Marth's voice was angry and it cut Mario the same a dagger would have.

" Why don't you make me!" Mario was so angry at Marth. _Who did he think he was?! Telling me to leave a place that was practically my home!_

Marth grabbed Mario and violently pushed him out the door. This was too much. Way too much. Marth ran past Mario, leaving Daisy alone in the room with her unconscious cousin.

**LATER THAT NIGHT… **

_Peach walked through the woods of the mushroom kingdom. It was raining. She had heard a faint cry and she wanted to see where it was coming from. She followed the noise until she came to a river. On the other side of the river she could see a women with pale blonde hair. She was the most beautiful woman Peach had ever seen. In the women's arms was a baby with bright sky blue eyes. _Hey !, _Peach thought, _It's me! When I was a baby! So that must be my mom! _Peach was just about to yell for her mother when suddenly the baby started crying again. But instead of comforting the baby, the mother pulled out a knife. If Peach could have screamed she would have, but for some reason she remained silent. Just as the mother was about to stab the knife into the innocent child a bullet shot the knife out of her hand. The women ran, leaving the infant screaming in the rain. A man walked over and picked up the baby. Slowly he turned around and walked back into the forest. _

Peach woke up from the horrible dream. Or, she would call it a dream, even though it was really a memory. And even though Peach wanted more than anything to scream, only one word would come out of her mouth. Dad.

**THAT'S ALL FOR NOW FOLKS!**

The last part of this chapter is a dream, or, memory that Peach is having. Please review!!!


	5. Beware of Trees

Disclaimer: I own nothing!

**NOW ON WITH THE STORY!**

Mario sat at his favorite pizza place. Luigi had insisted that they go out after he had heard about the events that had happened yesterday.

" Luigi I'm just so angry!" Mario didn't want to be taking this out on his brother, but he couldn't help it.

"Calm down man," Luigi voice sounded understanding, but also somewhat agitated. "Here, you can have the last slice of pizza." Luigi causally slid the plate over to his brother.

"I don't want it." Mario mumbled. Luigi's eyebrows flew up in shock.

"Wow you really are mad! Or maybe you're not really Mario… Maybe you're an alien clone and the aliens kidnapped the real Mario! They're probably using his brain to take over the world!"

"Luigi that's not possible!" Mario yelled. Could his brother not be serious for a single second!?!

"Yeah, your right. Mario's brain could never hold that much power! What was I thinking? Duh!"

After they were done eating, Mario and Luigi walked home. Neither one of them had a car because they hadn't bothered to get their license. Peach had always driven them wherever they needed to go. With every step he took, Mario started to think less about where he was walking and more about Peach.

Luigi heard a slight thumping noise. He turned around to find Mario lying on the ground, unconscious. _Silly Mario,_ thought Luigi, _you supposed to walk around trees, not walk into them! Oh well! _Luigi kept on walking, leaving his brother lying in the middle of the grass by the tree.

While he was unconscious, Mario had this dream…

**THE DREAM… **

"Mario!" He heard the voice; it was a voice he would know anywhere.

"Peach," Mario called, "Is that you?" Mario walked in the direction of the voice. A few more steps… He could see her now. She was beautiful, just like she always was. _Please don't let this be a dream! _Mario thought to himself. _Why can't things be like this all the time? Right now, everything is just so… perfect! _

Then, suddenly, clouds appeared. Everything started to get darker. Two giant hands closed in over Peach, forming a cage. 2 boys hands… Marth's hands! Thinking on his feet, Mario quickly pulled out his sword (_Where did I get this thing?!),_ and stabbed through the hands. But when the blade touched them, they vanished, revealing that he had stabbed Peach instead. Mario let out a cry at the site of Peach's blood.

" I'm so sorry Peach! I would never…" That was all he could manage between his sobs. Marth reappeared in next to Mario. He looked angry.

"How could you Mario! You hurt her! You will always hurt her!"

" But I would never _try_ to hurt her! I love her!" Mario felt bad enough without Marth pointing out the things that he already knew.

"No Mario," Marth's voice didn't sound angry anymore. It almost sounded taunting… " I love her. And I don't hurt her. And she loves me."

Mario opened his eyes. His heart was beating rapidly. _Oh my gosh. I'm so glad that was only a dream._ He looked around at his surroundings.Normally he probably would have stopped and wondered why he had been lying unconscious by a tree, but not now. Now he had more important things to worry about. Like how Marth had said that he didn't hurt Peach. He was lying. Mario knew there was something… something that was not right. And he knew just who to go to to find out.

**30 MINUTES LATER… **

_knock knock knock! _

Mario pounded on the door as hard as he could. He was standing outside of _the house._ The house where Marth, and his brothers, lived. Mario thought about turning around and leaving, but then remembered that he had already knocked on the door. All he could do now was wait for someone to answer the door, and pray that that person wasn't Marth.

A few seconds later the door opened. Mario quickly closed his eyes, not wanting to see who had opened it.

" Umm… can I help you?" asked and unfamiliar voice.

Mario opened his eyes to see Ike standing in front of him with a puzzled look on his face.

" Yes you can actually. Is Marth here?"

" No. He's with his girlfriend. But I can tell him that you stopped b-"

" Oh no you don't have to do that, its fine. Can I come in?

" Uh… Sure?"

After they were inside, and proper introductions had been made, Mario decided to try to get the information he had come for.

" So Ike, what do you think of your brothers girlfriend?"

"Well she seems nice enough. I just still can't believe that she's dating him. Not after what he di-" Ike instantly cut himself of. He had already said too much.

" Umm… Mario, you want some lemonade?" Ike asked nervously.

" No Ike, what did he do to her?" _Bingo! I knew there was something going on here! _

"You sure you don't want any? It's really good!" Ike was so nervous he was sweating.

" Ike, tell me what happened."

" Ok! But if I tell you, you have to swear not tell anyone. And I mean _anyone. _If you walk outside and tell that tree, your dead."

" I swear, I won't tell anyone."

" Ok well, the night before they met, Marth had tried to kill me. He started fighting and I went along with it because I though he was just messing around. But he wasn't, and he almost killed me."

Mario's mouth fell open in shock.

" Why would he do something like that?!" Mario screamed.

"The Dark Master told him to." Ike said casually, as though this was something that happened to everyone. " Any way, his next orders from the Dark Master were to kill the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom. He almost did to. But apparently he fell in love with her and decided he couldn't kill her. And now they're going out and Marth seems happier than he ever has been."

Mario got up and headed for the door.

" Hey, were are you going?" Ike called after him. "Remember, you said you wouldn't tell anyone!"

Mario quietly mumbled under his breath," And your brother told me that he would never hurt Peach, but that was a lie too."

**THAT'S ALL FOR NOW FOLKS!**

Sorry I took so long to post this! I kept getting my computer privileges taken away from me. Anyway, Please review!


	6. No other option

Disclaimer: I own nothing

**NOW ON WITH THE STORY!**

Peach and Marth sat in the rose garden behind Peach's castle. They didn't say anything to each other. They just sat there, staring up at the blue sky. More that anything, Peach just wanted to tell Marth. She wanted to tell him about her mother. She wanted to tell him about what her mother had done to her. But she couldn't. After about 30 minutes of silence, Marth decided to speak up.

"Ok Peach, what's wrong? Clearly you're upset about something. And it bugs me that you won't tell me."

" Nothing is wrong Marth. I'm fine. If there was something wrong I would tell you" Peach hated that she was lying to him, but she knew she wouldn't stop.

" Fine. Hey I have to go." Just as Marth was about to leave, his phone rang.

"Hello?" He answered the phone in a questioning tone, even though he knew who it was.

" Marth!," Ike's voice sounded worried on the other end of the line. " Dude you have to get away from Peach,"

" Why, exactly, would I have to do that?"

" Because Mario thinks you're trying to hurt her and he might possibly be on his way to kill you." The words were so rushed that it took Marth a minute to realize exactly what his brother was saying. After a few seconds of decoding Ike's words, it finally sunk in.

" Ike what did you do!?!" Marth tried his best to sound calm and in control, but it didn't work as well as he might have hoped.

" Well… I may have possibly kinda probably let it slip that you almost killed her. Maybe…" Ike's voice got smaller as he talked, and Marth could practically see Ike staring at his feet in shame.

" Ok Ike, why did you tell him exactly?"

While Marth was on the phone, Peach was deep in thought. Part of her was thinking about her father, part of her was thinking about how she had lied to her boyfriend, and part of her was wondering what the heck Ike was saying on the other side of the phone conversation.

" You idiot! You let him into the house?!," Marth definitely didn't try to hard to stay calm this time. " Ike, put Roy on the phone."

Ike couldn't hear what Marth was telling Roy, but he didn't really care. He was just glad that Marth wasn't hear to beat the crap out of him.

" Ok Marth, bye." Roy hung up the phone. Then he walked over to Ike, and smacked him upside the back of the head.

" Oww! Dude what was that for?"

"That was from Marth."

**BACK WITH MARIO**

Mario was walking as fast as his legs could carry him. He could feel nothing but the rage that was burning inside of him like a wild fire set in hell. He knew now that no matter what, he must get rid of Marth. Marth would hurt Peach. Who knows? Maybe he was hurting her right know? He probably had her tied up to a chair and was holding a knife to her throat…

Mario walked faster. _I have to get to Peach. There is no other option. _As Mario thought more and more about the current situation, his thought kept dwelling back to the one thing Peach's father had told him before he left.

_"Protect her Mario, You have to protect her. She thinks she can handle the world on her own, but she can't. She needs you. Don't let her down" _

" I won't let her down." Mario said the words out loud, hoping it would give him strength. Then another thought hit him. _I'm going to go pick a fight with Marth. Marth fought with Ike and won. Ike could smash me into a pulp. So how much stronger does that make Marth than me?" _

As quickly as the thought had come into his mind, it left. Marth would hurt Peach, and Mario was meant to protect her. There was no other option.

**THAT'S ALL FOR NOW FOLKS! **

I'm sorry I took so long to update, and I'm _**Really **_sorry that this chapter is so short! I hope the scene with the phone wasn't to confusing. I tend to think that if I can understand it then so can every body else, but that's usually not true! Thanks for reading and **PLEASE REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**


	7. What's the game plan?

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

**NOW ON WITH THE STORY!**

Daisy stood by the mirror in her house as she applied makeup. _It's definitely gonna take some getting used to this place._ She thought as she coated her already thick lashes with mascara. When Peach had told Daisy about her mom, it had taken a split second for her to pack her stuff and move out closer to her cousin in her time of need. But even though she had been here three mounths, this place still didn't seem like home.

Just as she was about to put on eyeliner, her phone rang. She quickly grabbed it and checked caller I.D.

" Hey Peach! I have been trying to get a hold of you all day but you wouldn't answer your stupid pho-"

" Daisy you have to go find Mario." Peach's voice was filled with a sort of angry excitement that Daisy knew only meant one thing.

" Ok, who's gonna fight? I know that tone of voice! Who is …" Daisy paused for a moment, then it hit her. " Who's fighting with Mario?!"

" Not important Daisy! Just go find him! And stall him please!"

" Fine. I'll see what I can do. Bye." Daisy hung up the phone, then went to go find Luigi so he could help her look for Mario.

**Back with Peach and Marth**

" Daisy? Hello?" Peach put down her phone. " She hung up on me."

" Are you sure you can work this out with him ? Peach, he thinks I hurt you… I did hurt you… I deserve to have him kill me. If he wants to take me out, I wont stop him."

" If you don't I will. I understand that he's mad but that doesn't give him a right to try and kill you."

Peach and Marth where on their way over to Marth's house. The figured that if Mario didn't find them at the castle, then he would come back there. Plus, if he spent a little more time looking for them, it would give them a little more time to think up a game plan.

They were just about to pull into the driveway when a yellow Porsche stopped them. Once Peach realized who owned the car, she quickly rolled down her window. The driver of the Porsche did the same.

" Daisy did you find him?"

" Yeah, and dang is he pissed. He seriously still thinks that Marth is going to hurt you."

" Well where is he now?"

" He said he was on his way over to your castle, but he's probably on his way over here by know. Peach what are we gonna do? I can't watch Marth and Mario fight!"

While Peach and Daisy talked, Marth went inside to talk with Ike and Roy. When Ike saw Marth's car in the driveway, he went up to his room and locked his door.

" Roy, where's Ike?" Marth asked in a rushed tone.

" He's hiding from you. He locked himself in his room."

A few seconds later Marth was standing in front of Ike; Ike's door was on the ground, in two separate pieces. Ike just stared at the door.

" You're paying for that." He finally said.

" Yeah ok. Ike you got me into this mess, you help get me out. What do I do? I can't fight him. I _won't _fight him."

" The answer my friend, is simple. You will fight him."

" No I won't Ike! I won't fight him. I won't harm him in any way."

" Well, not technically. Do you really not get it Marth. You _will _fight him, but you _won't _ hurt him." Ike felt proud of himself for finally confusing Marth, considering Marth had been confusing him and the rest of the world for years. After a few moments of thinking, Marth understood.

" Ike, don't you think that's a bit immature?"

" Maybe. But remember, if Mario was mature, he wouldn't be on his way to kill you over one little thing."

And even though Marth wasn't totally convinced, he agreed to the idea. It may be the only other option he had.

**Back with Peach and Daisy.**

" Ok, Luigi just called me. He said he found Mario about half way between here and your castle. He's trying to talk him out of it. "

" Trust me Daisy, Mario won't be talked out of it. He won't take any alternatives unless they involve fighting and _killing_ Marth."

" Speak of the devil…" Marth walked out to where Peach and Daisy were talking.

" Well?" Peach asked impatiently, " What's our plan?!"

" Ike has an idea, but your going to think it's really immature. You really want to hear it?"

" Yes" said Peach and Daisy at the same time.

" Well ok…" Marth proceeded to tell them about Ike's little strategy. Once he was finished he took a step back, excepting to be told what a stupid plan it was. But all Peach and Daisy did was laugh.

" Well," Daisy said in-between giggles, " It looks like you might end up letting Mario kill you after all!"

**THAT'S ALL FOR NOW FOLKS!**

It has been forever since I updated! I've been super busy with school stuff, even though that's no excuse. Yeah I'm just going to warn you for the next chapter: If you wanted a big fight scene, I'm sorry, this won't be it. But patience young grasshoppers… Good things come to those who wait! Please review! I like reviews! (Then again, who doesn't?)


	8. Let's Fight!

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

**NOW ON WITH THE STORY!**

Mario violently walked up to Marth's doorway for the second time that day. Only this time he wasn't here to gain information, he was here to gain back what was rightfully his. Even though he wanted so badly just to get rid of Marth and live his life, he couldn't help but think that he may be over reacting.

_Stop it. _He told himself, _you're only thinking like that because everyone else is trying to convince you not to do this. Luigi's just getting to you. Don't let him get to you. What was up with that anyway? Why had Luigi suddenly taken Marth's side? He is my brother, not Marth's. Marth has two brothers willing to stick up for him. I think I at least deserve one. _

Even though Mario would never tell him, he was hurt and upset that Luigi was acting the way he was. Mario had always stuck up for Luigi when the situation called for it, but when Mario needed Luigi's support the most, he had let him down.

Mario shook the thoughts from his mind. All he needed to think about right know was how the heck he was going to take down a guy that was 10 times stronger than him. And even on the off chance he _did _take Marth down, he would still have to go through Ike and Roy.

Despite his many fears and doubts, Mario knocked on the door. After about 3 seconds, he realized how stupid it was that he just knocked, and he went on inside without permission. He slowly started to walk down the hallway towards the kitchen.

" In here Mario!" called a voice from the other side of the house, maybe the living room. The sudden voice made Mario jump. He finished walking down the hallway and turned into the living room.

He walked in to find Marth and Daisy sitting on the couch, Roy sitting on the floor, Ike eating a piece of chicken over in the corner, And Peach over by the TV messing with the Wii.

" Marth." He said. He tried to make his voice sound angry, despite his fears.

" Hello Mario" Marth said in a friendly tone. He stood up and took a few steps toward the Italian plumber.

_Who does this guy think he is? Talking to me like, like I'm his friend? Like he wants to be _MY_ friend?! What the heck? This dude is even more messed up than I thought! _

The sound of Marth's voice brought Mario back from his thoughts.

"Look Mario, I know why you're here, and I know what you want. But we don't have to fight. What I did… It was a mistake… and I know that now. I regret it every minute of every day. I am truly sorry that it had to come to this." Marth's tone sounded genuinely sorry, and for a split second, Mario thought that maybe he _had_ blown this whole thing way out of proportion, but when he looked over at Peach, all those thoughts were once again replaced with anger.

"Look pretty boy, I don't care if you're sorry for what you did or …almost did or whatever! You still tried to kill my girl, and that is _not _ok with me!" Peach suddenly entered the conversation.

" Ok hold it right there Mario. First of all, I am nobodies' girl, Oh Kay? And second of all, Marth is trying to prevent a possibly violent situation and you are just egging him on. Now, can we just get this fight over with already?!"

" Gladly" Mario said with a smug grin on his face. Much to Mario's surprise, Marth sat back down on the couch where he had been before. " Ummm… Marth? Aren't you forgetting something?" Mario's face looked puzzled. He was assuming that Marth would at least want a sword to fight with. And surely they weren't having the fight in here? So why hadn't Marth moved?

" Oh, right man. I forgot." Marth got up and walked into the kitchen. He then proceeded to grab a few sodas out of the fridge and walk back into the living room. Mario just stood there, dumbfounded at Marth's actions. Clearly, he was not taking this fight seriously. Marth tossed a soda to Roy and Ike, then he held one out to Mario.

" Dude, do you want this?" Mario ignored the question and continued to stare at the pop can. After a few seconds he finally spoke up.

" Well.. Marth. That is an … interesting… choice of weapon." Marth just looked at Mario for about 5 seconds, and then started laughing.

" Mario, dude, this is not my choice of weapon."

" Then what is?" It was Peach who answered for him. She walked forward, holding up 2 wii controllers.

" These are." She handed one to Marth and one to Mario, who once again just stood there. This was too much confusion for his brain to handle.

" Ok please explain what is going on !" For the first time since he had arrived, Daisy began to speak.

" Well you see Mario, we all know how badly you want to kill Marth. However, we figured out a healthy, non violent alternative, that allows you to do that, and more." She walked over to the wii and pulled out a game case. Suddenly, like a ton of bricks, it finally hit him.

" Brawl! We're settling this with a video game?! Seriously?! Peach, whose idea was this?"

" This one was all Ike! But for once, it actually makes sense. You guys can "fight" but no one will get hurt! Please Mario just go along with it!"

" And if I don't?"

" The only other option would be to have you and Marth both fight me and see if either of you guys could take me down."

Mario grabbed the wii controller and sat down.

" Well Marth, let's do this!"

They played through all the battle stages. Marth would win some, Mario would win some, Marth would lose some, and Mario would lose some. By the time they got around to the last stage, they were tied with an equal amount of wins. At the beginning of the last stage, Marth was doing great, then he started losing. In the end, Mario was victorious, and Marth had been "defeated".

" Marth, it looks like I beat you after all." Mario said smugly.

" I guess you did. Good game mad."

" Yeah I was good wasn't I?! Hehe, well I gotta run. I kicked Marth's butt, which was all I came over here for. Bye." Mario got up and left.

" I wonder how long it is going to take him to realize that he didn't even accomplish his original goal." Roy said after a few minutes of awkward silence.

" I don't know Roy, I don't know. I think he just needed to beat me at something, and I guess this was good enough for him."

" HEY! Marth!", Ike shouted from across the room, " I thought you said that the only people who could beat you at brawl were Peach and Link!"

Peach smiled. " Now you're catching on." She laughed as she talked.

"You guys let him win!, I get it now!"

" Hey," Daisy interrupted," Why didn't you let me in on that part of the plan!"

" The same reason we didn't tell Ike and Roy, we knew you would let it slip." 

" Oh. What did Mario win anyway?"

" I don't know Daisy, I don't know."

" Well I do"

" What?" everyone asked Peach at the same time.

" He one back his dignity." And with that, they all got up and went into the kitchen to enjoy their dinner.

**THAT'S ALL FOR NOW FOLKS!**

I am so sorry I haven't updated in so long! I have caught this horrible disease called laziness! And I am afraid there is no cure! Anyway, Please do not bash this chapter just for its immaturity. I thought the idea was funny myself, but I know not everyone shares my sense of humor. This is my longest chapter yet. Oh and if you want to complain to me about the "fight scene", don't say I didn't warn you! XD

Reviews would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!


	9. Pictures

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Except for the dark master.

**NOW ON WITH THE STORY!**

"I can't believe he let you win!" Said Luigi. Mario had called him and told him about what had happened, and the two were now discussing it. They were in Daisy and Luigi's house.

" You can't? Really, it is just like something he would do."

" And you are sure you heard them right? Because no offense Mario but you do tend to misunderstand things."

" Yeah you're one to talk." Mario could see that his words had hurt Luigi by the expression that he was wearing. " Look man, I'm sorry. It's just that am really shaken up about this. I really think he might hurt Peach again."

"It's fine Mario," Luigi said in a rough voice. Mario looked at his brother with a confused expression. There was something different about him… what was it? Then he noticed. It was his eyes. There was a certain tint in them that Mario had never noticed before.

" Luigi are you ok?"

" I'm fine Mario."

" Ok…." Mario still wasn't convinced. But he was too hurt right now to look too far into Luigi's strange behavior.

" Hey dude, I know you need me right now, but I really have to ask you to leave. I'm sorry man."

" It's ok bro." Mario acted like he wasn't bothered by Luigi's odd behavior, even though he was. He got up and left, not closing the door behind him.

_I feel bad. I hope I didn't hurt his feeling. It's just that I have other things to do. If I could, I would tell him. I would tell him why he had to leave, but then again... I wouldn't want him to try and interfere. He might get hurt…_

**LATER THAT NIGHT**

Luigi walked up the thick dark steps that led to the door. He tried to suppress his internal screams. Luigi hated ghosts, and this place looked a heck of a lot like a haunted mansion. When he had finally made it to the door, he picked up the handle and knocked, then quickly took five steps back. He did not want to get near what ever it was that might answer the door. After about 2 minutes the door opened, revealing a creature in a long black robe. The creature kept its face hidden with a sort of dark mesh fabric. Or at least that was what Luigi thought it was. He really couldn't see much because it was very dark.

"The Master will see you know." The creature said in a low voice that made Luigi want to pee himself. The creature then proceeded to walk Luigi in to the dreary looking castle. Once inside, Luigi found himself surrounded by pictures. Pictures on every wall… all around him… Thousands of pictures caught his view on every side.

" Who _are _they?" Luigi asked subconsciously.

" Those are the Masters Apprentices. Or, they _used _to be." He laughed a bit when he said the word used. It was a dark twisted laugh. A laugh that Luigi did not like.

"Enough looking around, Follow me." Luigi did what he was told and followed the strange creature. They walked for a while, constantly being surrounded by different pictures that were hung along the walls, until they came to a large door. Luigi did notice that form under the door there seemed to be a black steam leaking out. Almost like it was a dark, thick fog.

Luigi was just about to get up the nerve to ask what it was when suddenly his thoughts were cut off by the creature's voice. It was looking up at the wall space above the door. It appeared that this picture was far bigger than the rest.

" He sure was a good one. The Masters favorite and most skilled out all of the Master's assassins. It sure was a shame to see that one go." Luigi followed the creature's gaze up to the photo.

As soon as Luigi saw it he gasped. He had been right, the picture was huge, but that wasn't why he was so shocked. It was the person in the picture that made him gasp. Blue hair, Blue eyes. The man wore bloodstained armor and carried a blood-coated shield. It was then that Luigi knew he had made the right choice. He knew now that his brother had been right, and that everything would soon fall into place.

And it was with this new found certainty in what he was doing, that he was able to walk through the doors that led to the throne of the Dark Master. And with that same newfound sureness, he was able to accept his one and only objective: To capture and kill the Master's favorite ex assassin, and to let _nothing _stand in his way.

**THAT'S ALL FOR NOW FOLKS!**

Sorry I haven't updated in forever! I wish I had some good reason for not updating but… I don't! And I am sorry that this chapter is so short.

Well anyway, PLEASE **REVIEW **AND **TELL ME WHATCHA THINK! 3**


	10. Reliving the past

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the Dark Master.

**NOW ON WITH THE STORY!**

Daisy slowly opened her eyes to find that it was still dark in her room. Drowsily, she reached for her phone. _Only 2:30. You have got to be kidding me. _Knowing that she couldn't possibly fall back asleep, she decided to go see if Luigi was having the same issue. As she opened the door to the room that Luigi usually slept in, she was shocked to find him missing. Sure, when he left he had said that he would be out late, but she never thought he would take _this _long…..

**In the meantime, over at Peach's castle….**

Marth sat back down on the couch holding a freshly popped bowl of popcorn. Peach, not being able to fall asleep, had invited him over to watch movies. They were almost through the Lord of the Rings trilogy when Peach's phone rang.

"Who the heck is calling me at 2:45a.m.?" She asked. Annoyed, she answered her phone. "Hello-"

"Peach, I need to talk to you"

"Well you're on the phone aren't you? Spill." Peach couldn't help but worry a little at the fact that Daisy had called her for help. Daisy and Peach were cousins AND best friends, but they never let the other one know when they needed help.

"Luigi's gone. He left around 7 last night and he DID say he would be out late but it's almost 3 and he still isn't back! I called Mario and he said that Luigi had been off all day, like…. I don't know he had been really distant or something. Do you know where he might be? Oh my gosh Peach! What if something happened to him!"

"Peach you're missing the best part of the movie!" Marth yelled, temporarily forgetting that she was on the phone.

"Peach, what is MARTH doing at your house at this time of night?" Daisy asked in a condescending way. She sounded as though she was about to say more, but she must have remembered that Luigi was missing because she kept her mouth shut.

"Never mind that, so you really think that he's missing? Isn't that just a bit of an over reaction? This is Luigi we're talking about. I'm sure he just got a sudden doughnut craving and went to the bakery."

"Peach, this isn't funny. I have a really bad feeling about this. I'm over here freaking out and YOU"RE trying to make this into some big joke."

"Fine, you don't want my advice?" Peach put down the phone and was about to hang up when Marth took it.

"Daisy, its Marth. If this is worrying you that bad then I will get Ike and Roy and we will go look for him. He couldn't be that far. And this town isn't that big so it won't take long. Don't worry, we'll find him." Marth hung up before Daisy could protest.

"Marth why do you want to go look for Luigi?" Peach was confused. This didn't make much sense, especially considering that Marth and Luigi didn't particularly get along.

"It's the right thing to do. And besides, I don't think this is just some standard, middle of the night doughnut run." With that, Marth grabbed his jacket, called his brothers, kissed Peach goodbye, and left to go find Luigi.

**About an hour later…..**

Marth now stood face to face with the masked villain. He hadn't been 30 minutes away from Peach's castle when he was attacked. Luckily, he had met up with Ike and Roy just before that, and he wasn't alone.

Ike and Roy watched helplessly as their brother fought this mysterious attacker. The first thing the man had done when he saw that Marth had others with him was to get rid of them. Needless to say, Ike and Roy were now tied to a tree about 30 feet from where the action was taking place.

The attacker was throwing punch after punch after punch, and he was throwing them at all the same places. Clearly, an inexperienced fighter. He was someone that Marth could have easily taken down had it not been for his oath never to hurt another living thing again. The only thing Marth was doing in this fight was dodging and blocking. Easy enough, but tiring after awhile.

"Why?" Marth kept yelling between breaths.

"You know why! It has to be done and if no one else will do it then I guess it has to be done by me!"

"This doesn't make sense. You're doing this for the wrong reasons. I know I deserve this; I am not fighting you on that. But if this why your mad at me, then why are you doing the same thing?"

"Shut up, you wouldn't understand. You're just to pre occupied with your own perfect life to realize the damage that you're causing others!"

"Please just tell me why. I don't' understand-"Before Marth could say another word, the attacker pulled out a gun, and shot him through the chest.

Ike and Roy let out cries that were loud enough to be heard from Peach's castle. Mario tossed and turned in his sleep. And Peach called daisy at the exact time the bullet was shot, telling her that something was very wrong.

And as all this was going on, only the attacker could hear Marth's gasping speech. In a voice tired, and worn out, a voice that already accepted and forgiven what had happened, in that voice Marth said. "I'm so sorry….. Luigi…."

**THAT'S ALL FOR NOW FOLKS!**

I updated! Yay! Aren't you proud of me? XD Sorry I took so long. I finally figured out how to get the files uploaded again, but I was just too lazy to get on the computer and type. Thanks for reading this and I am sorry that it is so predictable!


	11. After math

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

**NOW ON WITH THE STORY!**

The last 2 hours events played in Peach's mind like a horror film being watched on repeat. She had thought something was wrong, so she called Daisy. Peach agreed to come spend the rest of the night with her cousin and she left for Daisy's place. Only about 35 miles away from her castle, Peach was greeted by a horrid surprise. Marth….. Her Marth… barely conscious. Ike and Roy were tied to a tree nearby, but it wasn't them that Peach had gone to for answers.

"Luigi" Peach's voice shook when she said his name. He was crouched down below a tree just a few feet away from where Marth lay. "Luigi….. what….."

He looked up at her with darkened eyes, and the minute she saw him she knew…..

And that was how she had ended up here. Sitting in the waiting room of Mushroom Kingdom Hospital. She had been there for what seemed like hours, just waiting for someone to come out and tell her that Marth was alive…

Suddenly the hospital doors flew open, revealing a worried plumber with a red hat. "Is he ok? What happened to him? Gosh how could I have been so stupid to leave that idiot alone with m-"Mario was cut off by Peach

"You idiot! How can you walk in here saying something like that? Daisy called and said Luigi was missing-"

"Yeah, 'cus your "wonderful" boyfriend took him!" Mario was furious. He had gotten a call from Daisy saying that Luigi and Marth were both in the hospital. Marth just couldn't stop could he? He had all ready gotten away with the girl that Mario loved, but apparently that wasn't enough.

"MARIO!" Peach's yelling brought him back to Earth. "YOU'RE the idiot. Luigi shot MARTH, NOT the other way around."

"Wha… what?" She was lying. She HAD to be lying. There was no way that Luigi could have ever done something like that.

"Daisy called and said that Luigi was missing, so Marth offered to go out and look for him. I guess Luigi was the one looking for Marth, and apparently he found him." Peach let out a defeated sigh as she finished up her sentence.

"But that doesn't make sense. If Luigi shot Marth… the why is LUIGI in the hospital?" It only took a few seconds for Mario to interpret the guilty look that Peach gave him when he asked this.

"Peach, what did you do?" Mario sounded annoyed.

"Oh Mario, you make it sound like I attempted to shoot him like he shot Marth. All I did was simply punch him unconscious."

"Simply. Yeah, right." Mario rolled his eyes. "So… why did he do it? Luigi, I mean. Why did he shoot Marth?" When Peach gave no answer, Mario resorted to counting up Luigi's behavior over the past day. He had been off ever since Mario told him about their rigged match. And then it clicked. Slowly, Mario lifted his head to look at Peach, who was looking down at her feet.

"He… he did it for me didn't he?" The silence that followed was enough of an answer for Mario to know that he was right. And even though Mario was pissed with Luigi for taking things_ this _far, he couldn't help but feel honored that his brother would go to such great lengths to make him happy.

And as Mario sat in the waiting room beside Peach, who had became silent and no longer seemed present, his only thought was this:

_Thank you Luigi, but if you don't mind, I think it's about time I made things right. _

**THAT'S ALL FOR NOW FOLKS!**

Yes! I updated within 4 weeks! Vicotry! XD anyway, I hope there is no confusion here. If this clears anything up: Luigi shot Marth, so Peach knocked out Luigi.

Hope that helps! Anyway, R&R!


	12. In the end

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

**NOW ON WITH THE STORY. **

Mario walked slowly down the hallway to hospital room 216, the room where a blue haired boy who must have been a substantial amount of pain was probably sleeping. He got the door and stood there for a few moments, debating turning around and leaving.

_How can I face him? After everything that's happened what do I even say?_ After telling himself again that Marth was probably sleeping, Mario finally entered the room.

Marth shot up instantly when he saw him.

"Mario! Ow…" Marth grabbed his chest and slowly sat back down. "You'd think maybe I'd know better than to do that, just having a bullet removed from me and all." He laughed a bit as he said the last part; an action that puzzled Mario.

"Yeah, about that, I am so sorry. I really had no idea. I mean I guess I probably could have guessed and I maybe shouldn't have blown this whole thing out of proportion in the first place but-"

"Mario, its fine."

"And I know that I was stupid ok? You don't have to tell me and-…wait…Did you just say it was fine?"

"Well I am slightly medicated right now, but unless I am having really bad hallucinations then yes, I said it's fine."

Mario thought about this for a second. Marth had just undergone surgery a few hours ago, and he WAS heavily medicated. _He has to be crazy…_

"What the hell? It's not fine! Luigi SHOT you, and it was MY fault. And that's _fine_? Are you not pissed? Are you not worried? You do know you got shot right?" A nurse walking by shushed Mario, then closed the door. Mario disregarded her instruction and proceeded to yell at Marth.

"Dude, dude," Marth tried to get Mario's attention, "DUDE." Mario finally stopped yelling and turned to look at Marth. "I am very aware of the fact that I got shot." A sharp pain shot through his chest again and he grabbed it in a moment of agony. "_Very _aware."

"Then why aren't you mad?" Mario wasn't yelling anymore. Instead the anger in his voice had been replaced with a sort of curious confusion.

"Because, I have no right to be mad. I deserved what happened to me. Actually I deserved for that bullet to rip right through me and take my life." Mario now wore a blank confused expression on his face that not even he could have read had he been someone else.

"…What?..."

"Look, you think I'm a monster right? That I'm a horrible murderer who deserves to die?" Mario nodded slowly, wondering all the while if he had just stepped in to a trick question. "Well, you're right. I've killed people. I'm horrible and I deserve to have that same fate." Mario blinked a few times. Suddenly it was all making sense.

"That's why you didn't fight back against Luigi. I was wondering why you didn't just take him out. I know you could…And that's why Peach had us play a dumb video game instead of actually fight; because she knew you'd let me kill you."

"And because I know what I deserve. Contrary to popular belief I don't enjoy living with the past of being a murderer." His words were almost sarcastic, but his tone was friendly and calm. "I regret the things I've done more than anyone will ever know. Trust me Mario, there are days where I wish someone _would _shoot me just so I wouldn't have to live with this guilt anymore." There was a bit of a pause, and it was clear that Mario was trying to make sense of everything, so Marth began to speak again. "I really am sorry Mario. About everything I did to you, and everything I did to Peach. I know you love her a lot and I know that in your eyes I'm probably the worst guy in the world for her, but please believe me when I say I would never do anything to hurt her. I love her more anything else in the world."

"Yeah, I know. I do too...and I don't think you're the _worst _guy in the world. I just think that, you know…she could do better." He looked down at his feet when he said the last part. Marth just laughed.

"Better like you?" He laughed some more, and at first Mario thought he was mocking him, until he said," I agree."

"You…you agree? That I'm better for her than you are?" 

"Well…unless you have some secret past assassin jobs under your belt, then yes."

"You really do look at things from every perspective don't you Marth?" Mario thought back on all the things Peach had tried to tell him about Marth. That he was understanding, that he was caring, and that most of all he was sorry.

"I try. Look Mario, I know you love her. I love her too, but at the end of the day it's her choice, and I just want her to be happy. So I just want you to know that if she comes to her senses and realizes she's in love with a guy who tried to kill her, no hard feelings."

"You're ridiculous. You know for someone with a history of violence, you're awful forgiving." Marth laughed again as Mario said this.

"Well, I had to forgive myself for what I've done. And I figure that if you can do, you can forgive anyone." They sat in silence for a few more minutes. The nurse came back in to the room and told Mario that visiting hours were about over. As he was walking out the door he turned back around to face Marth.

"You sure you'll be ok?"

"Yeah man, I have an incredible immune system. Just give me a month and I'll be fun. The bullet didn't go in that far. Your brother kind of has lousy aim."

"Ok, that's good. And Marth…?" The nurse was all but practically pushing Mario out the door at this point, and she rolled her eyes when she heard him bring up yet another talking point.

"Yeah?"

"With Peach…_you_ make her happy. So don't be counting on her coming to her sense anytime soon. She loves you Marth. And I suppose…I'll just have to get over that. Maybe a few more rounds of brawl could help settle my emotions. Fair matches this time?" He smiled.

"Yeah, that sounds good to me."

"Cool." Mario left the hospital room, and the nurse let out a sigh of relief and closed the door behind him. As he walked out the hospital doors and then the rest of the way home he thought. Marth wasn't so bad after all. He actually seemed kind of cool if you'd just get to know him a bit better. _Maybe in time Marth and I will become friends..._Mario laughed at his own joke. _Nah…_He knew that part of him would always hate Marth for being the one who had Peach's heart, but he also knew that he would have to accept it. And Marth had a good point, she was happy, and at the end of the day that's what Mario wanted too.

Mario let out a sigh as the wind blew across his face. He ran through everything that had happened in his mind. In the end things hadn't turned out all that bad. Mario had gotten his rematch with Marth, Marth wasn't dead, his brother had protected him, and Peach was happy.

And at the end of the day that's all Mario really wanted.

**THAT'S ALL…FOREVER!**

It's finally finished! That only took me like…what? 2 years? XD Sorry about not updating forever. Hopefully I get better. Well the story is finally done. Sorry for a sort of half-assed last chapter. Lots of dialogue. It was a wee bit difficult to tie everything up. I'm sure there's some stuff I missed. Let me know if you notice anything I skipped over! Thanks for reading and sticking with me!


End file.
